TSX Ends Higher On Upbeat Data - Canadian Commentary

(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks ended higher Thursday, driven by resource stocks on steady commodities, amid some upbeat data out of Europe and China, with manufacturing activity in China expanding in August after contracting in the three previous months. Investors largely ignored the minutes of the Federal Reserve policy meet released yesterday, which offered little clues on the Fed tapering plans.

Activity in China's manufacturing sector bounced back from contraction in August with new orders recovering, a preliminary report from Markit Economics and HSBC showed. The flash HSBC purchasing managers' index rose to 50.1 in August from a 11-month low of 47.7 in July. Economists expected the index to increase to 48.2.

While a Conference Board report showed continued recovery in the economy with its index of leading U.S. economic indicators rising more than expected in July, initial jobless claims for U.S. unemployment benefits rose more than anticipated last week.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index closed Thursday at 12,674.35, up 101.27 points or 0.81 percent. The index touched an intraday high of 12,700.16 and a low of 12,573.08.

The biggest gains were made by the Diversified Metals & Mining Index. The Index surged 4.04 percent, with First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (FM.TO) up 4.97 percent. Osisko Mining Corp. (OSK.TO) up 0.58 percent, Teck Resources Limited (TCK.B.TO) gained 4.0 percent, and Lundin Mining Corp. (LUN.TO) added 4.49 percent.

The Information Technology Index added 0.91 percent, with BlackBerry Limited (BB.TO) up 0.19 percent.

The Capped Materials Index jumped 2.33 percent, with Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc.(POT.TO) adding 1.63 percent and Agrium Inc. (AGU.TO) moving up 2.33 percent.

The Global Gold Index gained 1.82 percent, with gold futures for December delivery adding $0.70 or 0.05 percent to close at $1,370.80 an ounce Thursday on the Nymex.

Among gold stocks, Kinross Gold Corp. (K.TO) gained 3.11 percent, while Yamana Gold Inc. (YRI.TO) gathered 3.56 percent. B2Gold Corp. (BTO.TO) added 1.01 percent, while Goldcorp Inc. (G.TO) gained 1.36 percent. IAMGOLD Corp. (IMG.TO) moved up 2.30 percent.

Barrick Gold Corp. (ABX.TO) gained 3.16 percent after announcing the divestiture of its Yilgarn South assets in Western Australia to Gold Fields Ltd. (GFI) for about $300 million.

The Energy Index added 1.08 percent, with U.S. crude oil futures for October delivery gaining $1.18 or 1.1 percent to close at $105.03 a barrel Thursday on the Nymex.

Among energy stocks, Cenovus Energy Inc. (CVE.TO) gained 1.66 percent, while Talisman Energy Inc. (TLM.TO) added 1.08 percent. Encana Corp. (ECA.TO) gained 1.26 percent, while Suncor Energy Inc.(SU.TO) added 1.52 percent.

The Financial Index moved up 0.51 percent with Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO) up 0.48 percent, Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO) down 0.19 percent, and Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD.TO) gained 0.74 percent. Manulife Financial Corp. (MFC.TO) gathered 2.16 percent.

The Capped Industrials Index added 1.60 percent, with Bombardier Inc. (BBD.A.TO, BBD.B.TO) up 2.84 percent.

Consumer products company Dorel Industries Inc. (DII_A.TO, DII_B.TO) added 2.27 percent after acquiring a 70 percent interest in Caloi, a major Brazilian manufacturer of bicycles and bicycle equipment.

In economic news, Statistics Canada said retail sales declined 0.6 percent in June to $40.1 billion, partially offsetting the gain in May. Economists expected sales to drop 0.4 percent in June. However in the first six months of 2013 retail sales were up 1.8 percent compared with the same period in 2012.

From the U.S., the Labor Department said initial jobless claims rose to 336,000, an increase of 13,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 323,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to climb to 329,000 from the 320,000 originally reported for the previous week.

The Conference Board released a report on showing that its index of leading economic indicators rose by slightly more than expected in the month of July. The Conference Board said its leading economic index increased by 0.6 percent in July after coming in unchanged in June. Economists had been expecting the index to increase by about 0.5 percent.

From the euro zone, German private sector activity expanded at the fastest pace in seven months in August, preliminary results of a survey by Markit Economics revealed. The composite output index, an indicator that measures the combined activity of manufacturing and service sectors, rose to a seven-month high of 53.4 in August from 52.1 in July.

Euro zone's private sector business activity expanded at the sharpest pace in more than two years in August, preliminary results of a survey by Markit Economics revealed. The headline composite output index, a gauge of business activity in both manufacturing and services, rose to a 26-month high of 51.7 in August from 50.5 in July. Economists had forecast the score to rise to 50.9.